MLB 2K6: Hands-On

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We swing for the fences with the first next-generation baseball title.

By Jonathan Miller

Baseball is a game of inches, but MLB 2K6 on the Xbox 360 is already taking long strides forward compared to the current-gen counterpart. Don't get us wrong -- the title has the same features, like the Swing Stick and Inside Edge scouting, as the PS2 and Xbox games. But with the extra development time -- the 360 version will be released a few weeks after the Xbox and PS2 games -- 2K Sports honed and tweaked the gameplay and controls for the better, and gave the players, stadiums, crowds and even hot-dog vendors a next-generation facelift.

2K Sports invited us to its compound in San Rafael, Calif. today to get a first look at the much-anticipated baseball title, the first hardball game released in this, the next generation. The first thing we noticed is how pretty the game is on the field. The lighting and stadiums, in particular, look stunning. We only got a chance to see three parks: Minute Maid Park in Houston, Fenway and the new Busch Stadium, and here's what we saw.

My eyes!

In St. Louis, we played an evening game and the light from the setting sun glistened off the famous Arch behind center field. Over the course of the game, a strong breeze blew in dark storm clouds and night eventually fell. In Houston, the huge left-field wall and the outfield lights cast large, dark shadows on the grass, which was cut in the exact same, intricate pattern that you'll see in real life. In Fenway, you could see dust being kicked up from base runners when their spikes dug into the base paths. David Ortiz legged out a double and slid awkwardly into second -- dirt stuck to his pants as he stood up.

2K also added a few more animations for fielders, which are very smooth, for the most part. Cloth physics, those same physics that make the jerseys in NBA 2K6 and College Hoops 2K6 ebb and flow, are present here too, although nowhere near as pronounced as in those games because, well, these are baseball jerseys and not tank tops.

There's also tremendous detail with the player models. If you were to go into instant replay and zoom in on Albert Pujols, you would see his black and red first baseman's glove and even his daughter's name embroidered into the black leather. Derek Jeter, ARod, Pedro, Randy Johnson -- all the stars have their real gloves included in the game. Little details like this really show that the dev team cares about baseball. The faces themselves are good, for the most part. Some of the lesser-known players have more of a generic look to them, but most players are clearly recognizable.